GCP/BGD/034/MUL National Food Policy Capacity Strengthening Programme (NFPCSP) Preliminary Findings of A Survey of Research Needs for Food Security in Bangladesh J. Mohan RAO* Adviser to FAO *University of Massachusetts and Institute of South Asian Studies-NUS, Singapore 29 November 2006

Aims of the Research Needs Digest (RND) To assess research needs and take stock of research appropriate to enhancing food security in Bangladesh: For policy-makers, researchers and civil society, to inform decisions about setting research priorities For NFPCSP, to inform decisions about setting a research agenda for technical assistance and awarding grants

Purposes of the Workshop To present the main findings of the work undertaken towards the RND To obtain feedback from the participants To secure participants’ sense of priorities across the full range of research areas pertinent to FS Note The work is still in progress and so this is an Interim Report with only tentative findings. In particular, we make no attempt to suggest research priorities or areas of focus

Methodology: Instruments The assessment is based on two instruments: Interviews with individuals from –Government Departments –Research Institutes and Universities –Non-Governmental Organizations –International Organizations and Donors Bibliographic Search for the period

Instruments (1): Interviews Personal interviews were conducted with the aid of a simple questionnaire that defined and illustrated each dimension of FS by eliciting from respondents research topics of importance from a national standpoint in dialog form with interviewer asking supplementary questions or requesting clarifications to get abstracts of each topic where possible

Instruments (2): Bibliographic The bibliographic search was conducted with exclusive focus on research on Bangladesh done in Bangladesh & elsewhere confined to the period based on search of relevant electronic data bases plus specific-source searches using all relevant search words

Methodology: Classification The topics generated by the Interviews and titles from the Bibliographic search have been classified by the following criteria: FIRST, by principal dimensions of FS SECOND, by sub-dimensions or clusters

Classification: Principal Dimensions Considered Main 1. Production and Availability Dimensions2. “Social” or Non-Market Access 3. “Economic” or Market Access 4. Utilization and Nutrition Cross-cutting 5. Governance and Institutions Dimensions 6. Infrastructure 7. Environment 8. Women+other Disadv. Groups

Classification: “Clusters” or Sub-Dimensions Clusters are chosen to partition the dimensions Each Cluster groups issues closely related in both logic and experience Please refer to the SURVEY form for the “Clusters” considered

Distribution of Clusters by Dimensions Production and Availability 6Governance and Institutions 3 “Social” or Non- Market Access 4Infrastructure3 “Economic” or Market Access 6Environment2 Utilization and Nutrition 5Women + Other Disadv. Groups 3 The 32 Clusters are distributed as follows:

Methodology: Rationale for Classification Scheme This method of classification aims to create some order in what otherwise would be a chaotic jumble of hundreds of items does not presume any priority or ranking among the clusters NOTE: Alternative clusterings are possible

Interviews VS Bibliography InterviewsBibliography yield important topics to be researched is set of completed research issues often express worries or concerns without scientific niceties scientifically defined problems or puzzles with established methods topics emerge from a respondent-interviewer dialogue often emerge from imperatives internal to the scientific process respondent is prompted to consider national interests research expresses the researcher’s or originator’s interests

The Progress So Far >75 persons from >50 agencies interviewed No. of respondent-identified TOPICS 251 No. of bibliographic TITLES identified 582 FINDINGS Findings from the Interviews and Bibliographic Search have been juxtaposed by cluster Please see the HANDOUTS

Frequency Distribution by Clusters (%)

Frequency Distribution (%) Across DIMENSIONS: Interviews VS Bibliog.

Scope and Limitations The intent is to focus on socio-economic research and socio-economic implications of scientific-technological research There is wide but not necessarily statistically representative coverage of respondents The dialog nature of interviews implies interviewer inputs may influence findings The findings are still work in progress

The Way Forward A follow-up workshop in February will reflect feedback received here. It will also include findings from interviews of another dozen persons including eminent national experts cluster-wise analysis of topics and titles and further grouping into “sub-clusters” consolidation of the findings into a digest to inform NFPCSP and the research and policy-making communities

Please Complete SURVEY Survey: Scoring Clusters on a 1-10 Scale Please score each cluster on a scale from [A cluster is a group of related issues.] Your scores must reflect your sense of national research priorities over the coming 5-10 years A score of 10 means "Very High Priority" and a score of 1 means "Very Low Priority“ Please score as many of the clusters as possible Feel free to seek clarifications from facilitators